Elevator construction



2 sheets-sheet 1 F'la H. E. HALL ELEvAToR CONSTRUCTION File Oct. 22,1930 June 23, 1931.

H11/W1 WM Hwef INVENTOR l H AT1-owner June 23, 1931. H, E, HALL1,810,960

' ELEVATOR CONSTRUCTION Filed Oct. 22, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheetv 2 INVENTORATTORNEY Patented June 23a i931 UNITED lerares renew PATENT HARRY EDWARDHALL, GF ENGLEVD, NEW JERSEY, .ASSEGNOR T0 GTS ElEVATOR COMPANY, OFATE-XV YRK, E. Y., A CORPORf-TION OF NEW JERSEY ELEVATOR CONSTRUCTIONApplication filed etooer 22, 1930. ySerial No. 490,427.

y cable or the like, to a limited portion of the' hatchway.-A Thisrestricts the amount of swinging motion of the depending flexiblemembers7 thereby preventing entanglement of these members with objectsdisposed withinor protruding into the elevator .hatchway Sucharrangement is useful in elevator installations on shipboard, whereinconsiderable swaying of the cables is likely to occurv due to the pitchand roll of the ship, and

in installations wherein a plurality of ele? vater cars are arranged inthe same hatch way so that the travellingr cable of one car must passanother car. t is also useful in installations wherein the hatchway isexposed, thus subjecting the travelling cable to the air currents whichtraverse the hatclr way.

A suitable chute for Vconiining the travel# ling cable is one in theform of a solid walled sheath extending vertically of the hatchway andhaving a central Vslot throughout its length. The sheath is preferablyshallow and wide with fa junction box arranged at one side thereof toVsuspend the hatchway end of the cable from a point remote from thecentral slot. The other end of the travelling cable depends from asupport fixed to the elevator car and extends .through the slot to thecenterl of the chute and thence to a point near the opposite side of thechute from the hatchway junction box.

The present invention is directed to preventing the elevator travellingcable or similar flexible member from gettingout of the chute throughthe slot.

The invention is useful, for example, in high rise installations whichnecessitate long travelling cables and in installations subject to aircurrents in which perforated or openworlr chutes are provided to reducethe wind resistance offered by the chutethereby subjecting the cables toair currents.

One feature of the invention is to provide guard means for the slot ofthe chute for retaining the travelling cable in the chute.

Another feature is the provision of a plu-y rality of guards for theslot arranged at intervals along the chute.

A third feature resides in the provision of guard means `for the slotwhich do not' restrict the vertical movement of the traveling cable.

Other features and advantages will be apparent fromthe followingdescription and y appended claims. 1 f f F or the purpose ofillustrating the genus of the invention typical concrete embodiments areshown in the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure l is a diagrammatic representation of a portion of an-elevatorhatchway with an elevator .car therein; j y AFigu'reQ is a top planvieweof the apparatus shown in Figure l;

Figure 3 'fis an enlarged horizontal section, illustrating thearrangement of vgue-afd means for the slotfof thetraveling cable chute;

`Figure 4l is an elevational detail of another form of guard means;

Figure 5 is .an yelevational Vdetail of still another form of guardmeans; and

Figure 6 is a top plan kdetail of partsy shownl in Figure 5.

Referring tothe drawings7 the elevator carl() is provided vwith railsfor guiding it during its travel up and down the hatchway 13. Thetravelling cable 12 whichV contains conducting wires leading to and fromthe elevator car is illustrated as a single cable CLI `Way to enclosethe cable.

but it is to be understood that several cables maybe provided, dependingupon the requirements of the particular' installation. This cable isusually connected to a junction box 14 on the bottom of the elevatorcar. A conduit 15 leads from the junction box 14 to the car switch orother control or signal mechanism in the car. This Conduit Containsconducting Wires joined to the travelling cable conducting Wires at thejunction box 14. rIhe other terminal of the travelling cable is at ajunction box 17 secured to a side Wall of the hatchWay 13, usually atthe approximate center of the vertical travel of the car. Cable 12 issuspended at junction box 17 in such manner as to take the load off theconducting Wires. A conduit 11, illustrated as leading from the junctionbox 17, is indicative of the connection from the travelling cable to thecontrol or signal apparatus outside the car.

To confine the travelling `cable to a limited portion of the hatchway13, vertical sheath or chute 18 is provided inthe hatch- This chute 18is refcrably constructed of fairly heavy gauge metal, is made shallowand Wide as illustrated in Fig. 3 and is` secured at intervals to thelhatchvvay Wall in any suitable manner. It is provided with a centralopening 2O extending vertically throughout its length and the edges 21of the chute bordering the opening 20 are preferably rolled. The chutemay be of open Work or perforated construction, for example ininstallations VWhere the hatchway is exposed, to'reduce the Windresistance offered by the chute. r

Junction box 17 is arranged atV one side of the chute to suspend .thefixed end of the travelling cable at a point remote from the slot 20.The other end of the travelling cable is supported fromthe elevator carin such manner as to cause the cable to depend into the chute at theother side thereof. This support may be in the form' of a pipe7 bracketor any other suitable means. In

Figures 1, 2 and 3 a pipe, designated 22q has been shown.A This pipe isksupported from the bottom of the car andis provided with a right anglebend as .illustrated in FiguresV This Yarrangement causes the bightv ofthe` cable to traverse the slot 20fat all times.

To prevent the travelling cable or any porf tion thereof from gettingout of the chute through slot 20, a number ofguards 23 are provided atintervals along the slot. In the embodimentv shown in Figures 1, 2 and3, each of the guards, designated 23, comprises a lever 24 pivoted atits center to the chute 18 in such a manner as to cause one end of thelever to traverse the opening 2O of the chute. The lever is mounted torotate freely on a pin 25 Which extends outwardly from a mounting plate26hsecured to the chute adjacentthe slot 20. lVashcrs 27 are disposedbetween the lever and plate to space the lever but a slight distancefrom the rolled edges 21 of the chute so as to prevent the travelling.cable from leaving the chute. The lever 24 may be maintained in ahorizontal position by any suitable means. As illustrated in Figures 1,2 and 3 this means is a centering Weight 28 depending from the pivot pin25 and secured tothe lever 24 at right angles to its length. During theoperation of the elevator car, the support 22 for the travelling cableengages the respective levers 24 rotating them to a position to uncoverthe slot, thereby permitting the support to pass by the guard. As soonas the support has passed a guard, the centering Weight 28 for ,theguard returns the guard lever to a horizontal position. Stops in theform` of screws or pins 29 are secured, to each mounting plate 26 aboveand below the pivot pin 25 to'limit the rotation of lever 24. l

Referring to Figure 4 of the drawings, another form of guard is shown.This guard is also in the form-*of a lever, designated 30. This leverispivoted to the chute 18 soA as to traverse the slot 2O in the samemanner as before. Lever 30 is biased into horizontal slot-traversingposition by centering springs 31 each of Which engages the free end ofthe lever and a lug on the chute. AThe travelling cable support 22 isadapted to brush this lef ver to one side during the travel of the carin either direction, and springs 31 return these levers to their normalpositions after the support passes the guard. Lever 30 is preferablyconstructed of aluminum or some Y light alloy and its mass reduced asmuch as possible. This diminishes itsinertia sothat very little noisewill result from impacts of the support 22 and the levers.

`Other -arrangementsof guards may be employed, if desired. Forl example,guards which are noiseless in operation may be provided.v Such guardsare particularly suitable for passenger elevator installations. InFigures 5 and 6 a magnetically operated guard is illustrated in whichmechanical conposite sides of the slot, as to dispose the rods 33 in thesame horizontal plane. are biased into slot covering position by a pairof springs 35 mounted on the rods 33 between the two outside bearingmembers 3d and stop rings 36 fiXed to said rods to engagel the twoinside bearing members 34 when the cams are closed. A pair of elongatedplates 37 are Xed to the outside ends of rods 33 at right anglesthereto. A pair of magnets 3S are carried by the elevator car and arepositioned to attract the plates 37 outwardly as the cable supportpasses the guard. The plates extend equal distances above and below therod ends and are of suiiicient length so thatan outward pull exerted onthe ends of the plates opens the guard prior to the passage of thetravelling cable and its support between the cams. The magnets arelaterally'spaced so as to allow a slight clearance between the platesand magnets when theplates arev drawn outwardly to open the guard, asillustrated in-Figure 6. Themagnets 38 are constantly energized duringoperation of the carto open the guards as the plates 37 come under theinfluence of the magnets. The two inside bearing members 34may be set toform stops to limit thel outward movement of the cams, rods and plates.

.The guards may be mechanically operated in the event of failure of themao'nets te withdraw the eams.- To this end tIie cams 32 are in the formof segments and so disposed that the centers of their curved surfacescontact when the guard is closed. This allows the cable and its supportYto wedge the cams to open position and to pass through the guard ineither direction. The form of cabler support shown in the first threefigures may be employed, but preferably the type shown in Figures 5 and6 is utilized. This support consists in a plate member 40 having itsupper edge secure-d flush with the bottom surface of the elevator carfloor by a. right angle bracket or other suitable means. Support plate40 has a right angle bend ,411 therein and extendsV through slot 20 ofchute 18 tothe center of the .chute and thence to a point near the side,as setforth in describing the pipe 22.

Travelling cable 12 is secured tothe bottomY edge of support plate 40 bystraps or other suitable fasteners. The upper edge ofsupport 40 istapered to a narrow 'edge at thev point where the support passes betweenthe guard cams, as shown in VFigure 5, and a guide strap 42 surroundsthe support and cable at this point. The guide strap Vis a vlittlewiderthan the cams and tapers to a blunt point above and below thetravelling cable to fact as a wedge for opening the guard cams in casethe magnets are not energized. Y V- Since the attractiveV force exertedby each magnet on a plate varies inversely as the square of the distancebetween them it may be found desirable to reduce 'theVV air gapA betweenmagnets 38 and plates 37. To this end the throw of plates 37 `may bereduced by inserting a lever system, affording the proper mechanicaladvantage, between the plate and guard bars to eflect the withdrawalv ofsaid bars. In place 'of the two guard bars illustrated in Eigures 5 and6, a single sliding bar crossing the slot 20 may be employed inconnection with a lever system having .additional levers projecting intothe path of the travelling cable support to cause the operation of thelever system and thus withdraw the latch bar in the event of failure of'the energization of the magnets. y

The arrangements above described are alsosuitable for defining the pathsof movement of other flexible members depending from the car orcounterWeights-such as, for example, the airhose employed'to conduct airto the gate operating mechanism, compensating'cables depending from thecarv and `vcounterweight or other similar members.

As many changes could be made in the abovel construction and manyapparently widely differentembodiments of this invention could be'madewithout departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all mattercontained inthe above description or shown in the accompanying drawingsshall be interpreted asgillustrative andl not in a limiting sense. Y

Vhat is claimed'is:

- 10o 1. In an elevator installation, a hatchway,

a body adapted to travel up anddown the hatchway, a flexible memberattached to said body and depending therefrom into the hatchway, a chutefor said flexible member, and means for preventing egress from the chuteof any portion of said member withinv the chute.

2. In an elevator installation, a hatchway, an elevator car adapted'totravel up and down in said hatchway, a travelling cable depending fromsaid car. anda wall of said hatchway, a chute forV said travelling cablefor confining said-cable to a :limited pei-tien of the hatchway, saidchute beingdisposed ..115V

portion of said cable fromswinging out of said chute. through saidopening.v

4. In anl elevator installation, a liatcliway, an elevator cai' adaptedto travel up and .down in said liatcliway, a travelling cable dependingfrom said car and a Wall of said hatchivay, a chute for said travellingcable disposed along the Wall of said hatchway, said chute having avertical slot therein,

.the car end of said cable ext-Gliding into said chute .throughsaid slotand said slot extending throughout the path of travelof said carend ofthe cable, guards disposed at intervals along said slot for preventingany por- .tion of saidcable from swinging out of `said slot, and meansactuated in accordance `through said slot to one of the sides of said iWith car movement for operating each of said guard means to uncover saidslotas the car end of said cable passes that guard means. Y l

5. In an elevator installation, a hatcliivay, an elevatorcar therein, aflexible member hanging in the liatchivay with one endattached to thecar and the other end attached to a point in the hatcliivay,'a chute forsaid flexible member for confining said memberV 6. In an elevatorinstallation, a hatchivay, an elevator car adapted 'to travel up anddown in said hatchvvay, aftrafvelling cable depending from said car anda point 0n a Wall of said hatchvvay, a chute for said travelling cabledisposed along said Wall of the liatcliway, said chute being flat andWide Vand having a central slotV extending.

throughout its length for admitting the car end of said cable, asupportfor'said car end of the cable extending into said chute chute remotefrom said slot, means fory supporting the other end of saidl cable fromWithin said chute at thel opposite -side thereof, a plurality of guardsdisposed at intervals along said chute, each of said guards beingpositioned to extend across said slot and being movable out of slotcovering position, a part of said support for the car fend of the cablebeing adapted to move each of said guards out of slot covering positionas the carl end of the cable passes sucli guard, and means for returningeach guard to, slot covering position after 'the car end of the cablehas passed thatguard.

'7.- In an elevator installation, a hatcliway,

a body adapted to travel up andv down in' the hatchway, a flexiblemember attached to said body and depending therefrom into the hatcliway,a chute for said flexible niember, a slot in said chute extendingVthroughout the path of travel of the body-attached end of the flexiblemember, and a-plurality of levers extending across said slot anddisposed at-intervals along said chute for preventing egress from theslot of any portion of said member Within the chute.

8. In an elevator installation, a hatchvvay,

an elevator car adapted to travel up and down in said hatchway, atravellingy cable depending from said car and a Wall of saidhatchivay, achute for said travelling cable for confining said cable to a limitedportion of the hatchway, said chute Y being disposed along said Wall ofthe hatchway, a "slot in saidl chute extending throughout the path oftravel of the car-attached end of said' travelling cable, a plurality oflevers pivoted 7 at intervals to said chute and biased into positionstraversing said slot to prevent egress from the slot of anyportion of said travelling cable Within the chute, and means carried bysaid car for moving V.each of said leversabout its pivot into positiontouncover the slot as the car-'attached end of the cable passes thatlever.

9. In an elevator installation, a hatchway, an elevator car therein, aflexible member hanging ijn the hatchivay with one end'attached to thecar and the other end attached to a point in the, hatchway, a chute forsaid flexible member 'forconfining said member to a limited portion ofsaid hatehvvay, said chute having a central slot extending throughoutits length, aplurality of guards disposed at intervals along said chuteand biased into slot covering positions to prevent egress from saidchute of any: portion of said flexible member Within said chute,magnetic means carried by said car for retracting said guards out ofslot-'covering positions to prevent the car attached end of said Aflexible member Vfrom contacting said guards.`

10. In an elevator installation, a hatch- Way, an elevator car therein,a' flexiblemein-- ber hanging in the hatchway. with` one end attachedtotheicar and the other end attached to a point in the liatchway, a chute`for said flexibler member for confining said;- member to a limitedportion of said hatch? Way, said chute having av central slot ex,-

guards'disposedat intervals along said chute and biased into, slotcovering positions to prevent egress from said chute of any portion ofsaid flexible member Within said chute, each of said guards beingprovided With magnetizable nieans,magnets carried by said ca r forcooperating with magnetiza- .tending throughout its length, a pluralityof blemeans of the respective guards to retract said guards out ofslot-covering positions to prevent the ear-attached end of said flexiblemember from contacting said guards and a support for conducting thecar-attached end of said flexible member through said slot to a pointWithin said Chute remote from the slot, said support having a partadapted to move said guards out of slot-covering 10' position in thevevent of failure of said magnets to retract said guards. Y

In testimony whereof7 I have signed my name to this specification. HARRYEDWARD HALL.

